Page 38 of Priest

“Okay.” She nods, glancing around.

My house is in a nice part of the Irish Channel. It’s not a million dollar mansion by any means, but it has old-world charm with its wide-plank wood floors, high ceilings, intact transoms and French doors that lead out to the private balcony on both levels.

It overlooks Constance street, and I’m lucky it’s a nice neighborhood and is very quiet. I like to come home to quiet after the craziness of the club and the world in general.

I show her the small living/dining and the kitchen with modern appliances while she looks on silently. I’m a minimal guy and tidy. I don’t have a lot of stuff and I’m not home all the time, only to sleep and feed my cats. It’s warm, slightly industrial with the color palette, but not really a bachelor pad.

We mount the stairs and I point out the shared bathroom; it has the same wooden floors but white flecked tiles and silver hardware. It’s a tub/shower combination and simple but elegant. My sister helped me a lot because she’s better at this stuff than I am, but it had to be better than the dark green walls it had before.

“Your home is beautiful, Priest,” Bella says. “It has a cozy feel.”

“Thank you. I’ll show you the attic.”

The space has the same decor and flooring as downstairs, with white walls and a long window down one side that I had installed when the roof was redone. Otherwise, this would be too dark for a spare room and just usable as storage. It also has my desk with shelving behind and a computer. The far window facing the front has the couch that folds out to a bed. We can set that up later.

“This is nice, Priest, really. I’m so grateful.”

“That’s the closet I told you about. If anything suits, you’re welcome to wear it.”

She looks down again. “Okay.”

“Well, I might order us some lunch through DoorDash. What do you feel like?”

She’s still holding my cat and he’s now asleep in her arms. “Anything, I don’t mind.”

“No preferences?”

She shakes her head. This indecisiveness can’t last. She’s shy, but she doesn’t have to be like that around me. I’m not gonna get mad at her because she feels like Thai food and I like pizza.

“I’m gonna grab a burger and some fries from Burger Out. I can text you a menu.”

“I don’t have a phone,” she whispers.

Shit. I forgot about that.

I palm the back of my head. “That reminds me. I dropped a cell off with Linda the other night when you didn’t come to the Soup Kitchen. I collected it this morning, it's in my saddle bag.”

“Priest, you’re doing too much for me.”

“It’s no big deal. If you’d had that phone last night, you could’ve called for help.” I clear my throat. “I’m sorry, Bella. That it happened. It would make me feel better if you held onto it.”

She looks up at me, snuggling her face into my cat’s body. “Okay, Priest.”

“Are you always gonna do what I tell you?” I quirk an eyebrow.

She shrugs. “It’s what I know.”

My amusement turns into a frown real quick. “In your family?”

“Yes. I… I was there to be seen and not heard. I don’t mean to just go along with whatever you say, but if I disagreed with anyone in my family, the consequences were not worth the punishment.”

I stare at her. What kind of monsters did she grow up with? “You don’t have to ever agree with me just to keep the peace. If you don’t want to do something, then you can say no, got me?”

She nods.

“If somethin’ makes you uncomfortable, you just have to say. You’re not gonna be in trouble for speakin’ your mind. In fact, I’d prefer it.”

She doesn't sound convincing when she says, “I’ll try.”

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